Space Micro Inc. has been awarded a $100,000 by the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) for a Phase I Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contract to develop space communications hardware that is compatible with a wide variety of existing communication systems and is not susceptible to the damaging effects of radiation in space.

This reconfigurable hardware, called the Micro Software Defined Radio (µSDR™) will be ideally suited for several Air Force satellites to support the various ground forces and aircraft around the world. Traditional software defined radios have major problems in radiation environments, such as those that exist in space. The µSDR™ will be scalable, reconfigurable, and radiation hardened against the harsh space environment, making it suitable for long term satellite use. The µSDR™ will incorporate will incorporate Space Micro’s proven radiation mitigation techniques along with innovative new solutions that will drastically improve the reliability and functionality of software defined radios in space.